Such Peculiar Creatures
by LiquidxIce
Summary: In its dying moments, the kyuubi reflects on humanity.


Humans, the kyuubi reflected, were peculiar creatures. They were completely illogical and every time you thought you had them figured out, they surprised you. This boy, especially, made no sense. Of all the humans in the world, of all those in Konoha, the fox had to be sealed into this one.

At first the kyuubi felt he was making progress with the boy. As the villagers rejected, hated, and tormented him, the child became more useable and similar to the kyuubi. The demon was stronger the more fear, pain, anger, and hate enveloped the boy. The townspeople only increased his power the more they hurt the youth. But then the incident with the scroll and Mizuki. The kyuubi had been so close to freedom it could almost hear the screams it would soon be causing. The kid was so close to the point of no return… and then that damn fool Iruka had interfered. How dare he ruin everything? His stupid sacrifice and his horrible sincere words… even crying! The kyuubi shuddered. The boy had only come out of the event stronger and in more control of the demon than anytime before in the child's life. So the kyuubi had to bide his time.

Then the first time the boy had lost any of his control over the kyuubi. If only the enemy's mask hadn't slipped. If the kid had destroyed the ice-user, the nine-tail surely would have gained some power. But yet again the kid came out of the process stronger.

More time passed. The teacher of the man who had sealed the kyuubi taught the boy some control. The kid had even threatened the fox! Amused, the kyuubi had lent power to the child time after time simply to watch and be entertained by the results.

Then his worst scare. The youth had pulled the stupid sacrifice stunt again, and taken more damage than the demon knew how to fix. For the first time, the fox truly knew fear. It watched the boy fall down, watched darkness swim in front of it's own eyes. He and the boy both knew they were dying. Dying over some stupid woman the boy didn't even know. Then the kyuubi knew wonder. Some power forced the darkness away. It fixed the damage even the greatest of the tailed beasts couldn't fix. And the power did not come from the fox, and it did not come from the healer woman. It came, the demon fox realized with astonishment, from the boy himself. In the midst of the pain, fear, and death that was somehow leaving, the kyuubi had a disturbing thought. Could the boy have some power the fox couldn't understand? Was the boy, was he stronger than the kyuubi? The demon pushed the idea away. It was impossible. Even the strongest ninja in all history was weaker than him, only able to seal, not kill the kyuubi. Even that was at the cost of the man's own life. No, the fox told itself, the nine-tailed fox was the strongest in existence, in all time. Yet the doubt remained.

More time passed. The youth's friend betrayed the youth, tried to kill him. At that moment the kyuubi took over. Such power he had over the boy! The most power he had possessed since being sealed. But even then, the boy prevailed. When the kyuubi attempted to bring down the betrayer with a killing blow, the boy took control once again. It kept the kyuubi from killing the betrayer, instead only scratching the forehead protector. Although this meant something to the boy, all it meant to the fox was that the enemy was not killed. It growled and shouted it's disgust to the boy, but the boy would not listen.

More time passed, and the boy trained. The kyuubi felt itself getting well. It could take more control over the boy. It sat there in the dark, focusing it's power whenever the boy's defenses were weak. Time after time it gained control, grabbing more power each time. But it still could not destroy the seal.

And now this. The kyuubi could not understand. It had used its power, trying to take control, but the boy had been too strong. Even as the fox had desperately attempted to take itself and its human prison in the opposite direction, the boy threw himself forward, blocking the stupid girl from the path of the weapon. "Why?" the kyuubi screamed. "She does not love you, she would not sacrifice herself for you! She is not your mate! She calls herself the mate of the betrayer! Why would you kill both of us to save her stupid hide?" But the boy only smiled and shook his head.

The girl cried, although she was safe. The boy comforted her, even though both he and the kyuubi knew she was not crying the way the boy would cry should she fall. The girl would only cry that way for the betrayer. Still the boy soothed her, even as the vision of the kyuubi and the boy went black. The fox could not understand. Why save her at the cost of the boy's life?

The boy only answered, "Because I love her." Ah, this excuse again. The same one the man who had sealed the demon away had used. Love. The fox shook it's head in disgust. But it knew, it finally admitted that somehow, the boy was stronger. 'Such peculiar creatures' were the kyuubi's last thoughts. Then everything went black.

xXx

Author's Notes: This was written a long time ago, before Naruto ever even went four-tailed, etc. So… sorry about that I guess. We do what we can.


End file.
